Posturing for Wellness: Good Health Begins with Good Posture

Doctors of chiropractic have long emphasized the importance of posture and other lifestyle factors in the body’s ability to function optimally. In a broad sense, good posture can be considered an ongoing battle against bad habits. “The body endures hundreds of insults each day,” says Scott W. Donkin, DC, DACBOH, “but we have the choice of controlling how they affect us. Once destructive habits are identified, people can change, prevent, and relieve both present and future physical problems. The quality of our later years can be enhanced and many physical problems prevented if we understand and deal early on with the underlying issues.” Dr. Donkin is the author of Sitting on the Job. [1]

Lifetime Regimen

What most people don’t know is that the following should be a lifetime regimen-for everyone-and not just when the back hurts. ACA Council on Chiropractic Orthopedics vice president Gary L. Carver, DC, DABCO, says that when they first get up in the morning, “People should use their hands and arms for support to get into a seated position. Next, they should swing their legs to the floor and stand up-using the hinge of the hips, rather than the back.”

But once the body is upright, is it up right? In other words, are the muscles, joints, and skeleton in a balanced posture? Too often, the answer is “no.” “As long as our body is performing, we take it for granted. We don’t concentrate on what we need to do to maintain good posture habits,” says Leo Bronston, DC, DABCO, DACAN, CCSP, and secretary of the ACA Council on Chiropractic Orthopedics. “Generally, we tend to hunch forward when we should be rolling our shoulders back and opening up the chest wall. That is something we need to practice-activating the proper postural muscles. We see many patients who simply don’t know how to achieve a more balanced trunk and neutral spine. Just as we learned to eat with a fork and that became automatic, we can train our muscles for good posture and balance, whether we’re standing, rising from a seated position, or getting out of bed.”